Letter: Gun rights must give way to public safety

With the horrific violence of recent mass shootings, we once again wring our hands, ask how this could happen, and ultimately shrug — knowing that nothing will be done by Congress to address underlying causes or through legislation to reduce the prevalence of guns.

The NRA encourages us to “up the ante” with even more gun ownership, concealed weapons, silencers, etc. The discussion regarding what is permitted by the Second Amendment gets us nowhere; there are many contradicting legal opinions. Searching Wikipedia, I find no solace. Several interpretations assert that “military hardware” can be defined as allowable personal ownership. So much for banning AK-47s.

I doubt this was the intention of the founders who adopted this amendment, but we must live with their intentional ambiguity. So it comes down to personal responsibility. Perhaps some sacrifice by the pro-Second Amendment gun factions may be required. Just because one can own extremely deadly weapons doesn’t mean one should or needs to. Please realize that extending the limits of Second Amendment rights should not be justification for a nation in which many live in fear of gun violence against themselves.

Protecting human life is our personal responsibility.

This story was originally published December 14, 2017 at 1:01 PM with the headline "Letter: Gun rights must give way to public safety."